206、有谁比那些爱自己，同时拥有世俗学问的人更坚信自己的眼睛开了，如神一样知道善恶的呢？然而，又有谁比他们更盲目呢？只是问问他们，就会发现他们甚至不知道灵的存在，更不用说相信了。对于属灵和属天生命的性质，他们则一无所知。他们也不承认永生，因为他们认为自己会像动物那样灭亡。他们根本不承认主，只拜自己和自然。他们当中那些想说话更谨慎一点的人则谈到一位统治万有的至高存在，却又不知道该存在是何性质。
这些就是他们的基本假设，他们私下里通过感官事物和记忆知识以多种方式证实这些假设；他们若敢，甚至会在全世界面前如此行。尽管这些人渴望被视为神，或最有智慧的人，但如果你问他们是否知道什么叫没有自我，他们就会回答说，没有自我就是没有存在，他们若丧失自我，就什么都不是。如果你问他们什么叫靠主活着，他们会认为这是一个幻想。如果你问他们是否知道什么叫良心，他们就会说，良心纯粹是幻想物，有助于约束普通老百姓。如果你问他们是否知道什么叫感知，他们只会嗤之以鼻，称其为宗教狂的标志。这就是他们的智慧，这就是那些“眼睛开了”的人，这就是那些为神的人。他们以为诸如此类的假设比白昼还清晰，并以这些假设为起点，由此继续往前走，以这种方式推理信之秘密。其结果除了是黑暗的深渊外，还能是什么呢？这些人比任何人都更是迷惑世人的“蛇”。不过，上古教会的这代后裔还不具这种性质。本章14-19节经文会论述他们后来的样子。
New Century Edition
Cooper(2008,2013)
[NCE]206. What group of people believes more firmly that their eyes are open and that like God they can identify good and evil than those who admire themselves and at the same time boast a good secular education? But what group is more blind? Just ask them and you will find that they have no idea of the existence of spirit, let alone a belief in it. Spiritual life and heavenly life they know nothing about. Eternal life they do not acknowledge, since they believe they will die like brute animals. They positively refuse to recognize the Lord, worshiping themselves and the material world instead.{*1} Those who want to speak cautiously say that some Supreme Entity rules all things, although they do not know what it is.
[2] These are their principles, and privately they use many arguments from the senses and from the academic disciplines to prove them. They would do so publicly as well, if they dared.
Such people want to be recognized as gods or as fonts of wisdom, but if you ask them whether they know what it is to lack selfhood, they will answer that it is nonexistence; once deprived of it, they would be nothing. If you ask whether they know what it is to live from the Lord, they consider the concept a fantasy. If you inquired whether they knew what conscience was, they would describe it as nothing more than an imaginary something-or-other good for keeping the common people under control. If you inquired whether they knew what perception was they would do nothing but sneer and call it a sign of religious mania.
This is their wisdom. These are the people who have their eyes open; these are the people who are gods. Principles like these, which they consider clearer than daylight, are their starting points. From there they go on to reason about the mysteries of faith. What is the result but a chasm of the deepest darkness? Such people more than any are snakes that lead the world astray [Revelation 12:9].
But the descendants of the earliest church were not yet like this. What verses 14-19 of the current chapter say about them shows what they were later to become.
Footnotes:
{*1} In the phrase "worshiping ... the material world," Swedenborg does not mean that those in question literally build altars to worship anything, but rather that in their thinking they substitute material causes for processes otherwise viewed as requiring divine intervention; for example, the creation of the world. They hold that the material (or "natural") world is everything that exists; there is nothing transcendent or beyond that world. (These people were sometimes called Naturalists, a term that often has a different application today.) To Swedenborg "worshiping the material world" (or "worshiping nature") was shorthand for having no spiritual life whatsoever or, essentially, ascribing to atheism. For just a few of the many other references to people of this type in his works, see Secrets of Heaven 775:2, 2343:8, 2993, 3175:1, 4214:2, 4950; Heaven and Hell 102, 313, 353, 464, 488:3; Divine Love and Wisdom 46, 69, 162, 349:2. [SS]
Potts(1905-1910) 206
206. Who have a stronger belief that their eyes are open, and that as God they know what is good and evil, than those who love themselves, and at the same time excel in worldly learning? And yet who are more blind? Only question them, and it will be seen that they do not even know, much less believe in, the existence of spirit; with the nature of spiritual and celestial life they are utterly unacquainted; they do not acknowledge an eternal life; for they believe themselves to be like the brutes which perish; neither do they acknowledge the Lord, but worship only themselves and nature. Those among them who wish to be guarded in their expressions, say that a certain Supreme Existence [Ens] of the nature of which they are ignorant, rules all things. These are the principles in which they confirm themselves in many ways by things of sense and of memory-knowledge, and if they dared, they would do the same before all the universe. Although such persons desire to be regarded as gods, or as the wisest of men, if they were asked whether they know what it is not to have anything of their own, they would answer that it is to have no existence, and that if they were deprived of everything that is their own, they would be nothing. If they are asked what it is to live from the Lord, they think it a phantasy. If asked whether they know what conscience is, they would say it is a mere creature of the imagination, which may be of service in keeping the vulgar under restraint. If asked whether they know what perception is, they would merely laugh at it and call it enthusiastic rubbish. Such is their wisdom, such "open eyes" have they, and such "gods" are they. Principles like these, which they think clearer than the day, they make their starting-point, and so continue on, and in this way reason about the mysteries of faith; and what can be the result but an abyss of darkness? These above all others are the "serpents" who seduce the world. But this posterity of the Most Ancient Church was not as yet of such a character. That which became such is treated of from verse 14 to verse 19 of this chapter.
Elliott(1983-1999) 206
206. Who are more convinced that they have had their eyes opened and that like God they know what good and evil are than people who love themselves and who at the same time possess worldly learning? Yet is anyone more blind than they are? Merely question them and it will be seen that they do not even know about, let alone believe in, the existence of the spirit. What spiritual and celestial life are, they do not know at all. Nor do they acknowledge the reality of eternal life, for they believe that when they die they will, like animals, cease to exist. The Lord they do not acknowledge at all; they worship themselves and nature solely. Those who wish to be more guarded in what they say speak of a Supreme Being ruling over everything, but do not know what that Being is.
[2] These are their basic assumptions which they confirm in a multitude of ways by means of sensory evidence and of facts which they have at their command. If they dared, they would even do it for all the world to see. Although such people wish to be acknowledged as gods, that is, as sages, they would reply, if asked whether they knew what having no proprium was, that it was having no being, and if deprived of proprium that they would be nothing. If asked what living from the Lord was, they would consider it to be a set of delusions. If questioned whether they knew what conscience was, they would say it is purely a figment of the imagination which can be of service in keeping the common people under control. If questioned whether they knew what perception was, they would do no more than laugh and call it some kind of emotionalism. This is the kind of wisdom they possess; these are the kind of opened eyes they have; and these are the kind of gods they are. Starting from assumptions such as these, which they imagine to be clear as daylight, they go further and in this way reason about mysteries of faith. And what can the outcome be but abysmal thick darkness? More than anybody else these are serpents who mislead the world. But this was not yet the nature of these descendants of the Most Ancient Church. Verses 14-19 Of this chapter deal with them when they had reached that point.
Latin(1748-1756) 206
206. Quinam magis se apertos habere oculos, et sicut Deus scire quid bonum et malum, credunt, quam qui se amant et simul ex mundo docti sunt? sed quis est caecior? Si consulantur modo, videbitur quod nec sciant, minus credant, quod detur spiritus: quid vita spiritualis et caelestis, prorsus ignorant: vitam aeternam nec agnoscunt, nam se credunt sicut bruta morituros: Dominum prorsus non agnoscunt, sed modo semet et naturam colunt: qui caute loqui volunt, dicunt Ens quoddam supremum, quod nesciunt quid sit, regere omnia. [2] Haec sunt eorum principia, quae confirmant multis per sensualia et scientifica apud semet; si ausi essent, etiam facerent coram universo. Tales, quamvis se pro diis seu sapientissimis agnosci volunt, si quaererentur num scirent quid non proprium, respondebunt quod sit non ens, si privarentur proprio quod nihil essent: si quaererentur quid a Domino vivere, cogitant esse phantasias: si interrogarentur num sciant quid conscientia, dicerent esse nihil aliud quam quoddam imaginarium, quod inservire possit pro vulgo ut teneatur in vinculo: si interrogarentur num scirent quid perceptio, nihil aliud facerent quam irriderent, et vocarent enthusiasticum quid. Talis est sapientia eorum; tales apertos oculos habent, et tales dii sunt: ex talibus principiis, quae clariora die putant esse, incohant, et procedunt, et sic ratiocinantur de mysteriis fidei. Quid inde nisi abyssus caliginum? Hi sunt serpentes prae aliis, qui seducunt mundum. Sed talis nondum fuit haec posteritas Ecclesiae Antiquissimae; at de qua agitur a vers. 14-19 hujus capitis, talis facta est.